Traditionally, suture has been utilized to close wounds and incisions, to attach separate tissue structures to one another, and to perform other medical and surgical functions. However, suturing requires skill to perform, particularly suturing procedures that are complex, time-consuming and/or difficult. Further, suturing may be impractical or unfeasible in certain situations. For example, in a minimally-invasive surgical procedure through a small opening (often referred to as an access port) in the patient's body, that port may not be large enough to allow suturing to be performed through it. If the port were enlarged to allow suturing, the benefits of minimally-invasive surgery through a small access port would be reduced or eliminated altogether. Indeed, as surgical technology progresses, the size of the access ports required in the body to perform minimally-invasive surgery decreases. For example, micro-laparoscopy utilizes instruments having a diameter of only 2-3 millimeters to perform procedures such as laparoscopic cholecystectomy and inguinal hernia repair. When instruments of such small diameter are used, the ports in the body through which they are inserted need be only 2-3 millimeters in diameter as well, resulting in minimal or no scarring of the patient after the procedure is completed. However, it is difficult or impossible to perform suturing within the patient's body through ports of such small size.
The use of the same reference symbols in different figures indicates similar or identical items.